An overview of Breast Cancer

Breast cancer develops when cells in your breast multiply and expand out of control,resulting in a lump of tissue known as a tumor. Breast cancer symptoms can includefeeling a lump, noticing a change in breast size, or noticing changes to the skinaround your breasts.

Breast cancer can spread to the tissue surrounding your breast, just as other typesof cancer. Moreover, it might spread to other areas of your body and develop newtumors. Metastasis is the medical term for this.

There are several different types of breast cancer, including:

Infiltrating (invasive) ductal carcinoma : Starting in your milk ducts of yourbreast, this cancer breaks through the wall of your duct and spreads to surroundingbreast tissue. Making up about 80% of all cases, this is the most common type ofbreast cancer.

Ductal carcinoma in situ : Also called Stage 0 breast cancer, ductal carcinomain situ is considered by some to be precancerous because the cells haven’t spreadbeyond your milk ducts. This condition is very treatable. However, prompt care isnecessary to prevent the cancer from becoming invasive and spreading to othertissues.

Infiltrating (invasive) lobular carcinoma : This cancer forms in the lobulesof your breast (where breast milk production takes place) and has spread tosurrounding breast tissue. It accounts for 10% to 15% of breast cancers.

Lobular carcinoma in situ : is a precancerous condition in which there areabnormal cells in the lobules of your breast. It isn't a true cancer, but thismarker can indicate the potential for breast cancer later on. So, it’s important forwomen with lobular carcinoma in situ to have regular clinical breast exams andmammograms.

Triple negative breast cancer : Making up about 15% of all cases, triplenegative breast cancer is one of the most challenging breast cancers to treat. It’scalled triple negative because it doesn’t have three of the markers associated withother types of breast cancer. This makes prognosis and treatment difficult.

Inflammatory breast cancer : Rare and aggressive, this type of cancerresembles an infection. People with inflammatory breast cancer usually noticeredness, swelling, pitting and dimpling of their breast skin. It’s caused byobstructive cancer cells in their skin’s lymph vessels.

Paget’s disease of the breast : This cancer affects the skin of your nippleand areola (the skin around your nipple).

The aberrant growth of some breast cells is what causes breast cancer, according todoctors. These cells continue to multiply and divide more quickly than healthy cellsdo, generating a bulk or lump. In order to reach your lymph nodes or other regionsof your body, cells can spread (metastasize) through your breast.

Breast cancer typically develops from cells in the ducts that produce milk (invasiveductal carcinoma). Breast cancer can also start in other cells or tissues within thebreast, including the glandular tissue known as lobules (invasive lobularcarcinoma).

The risk of breast cancer may be increased by hormonal, behavioural, andenvironmental variables, according to research. However, it is unclear why somepeople with risk factors never get cancer while others with risk factors do. It'slikely that a complicated relationship between your genetic composition andenvironment leads to breast cancer.

Inherited breast cancer

The majority of breast cancers, between 5 and 10 percent, are thought to be caused bygene abnormalities that have been passed down through a family.

There are several inherited mutant genes that can raise the risk of developing breastcancer. The most well-known are the breast cancer genes BRCA1 and BRCA2, which bothconsiderably raise the risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer.

If you have a strong family history of breast cancer or other cancers, your doctormay recommend a blood test to help identify specific mutations in BRCA or othergenes that are being passed through your family

Signs and symptoms of breast cancer may include:

1. A breast lump or thickening that feels different from the surrounding tissue

2. Change in the size, shape or appearance of a breast

3. Changes to the skin over the breast, such as dimpling

4. A newly inverted nipple

5. Peeling, scaling, crusting or flaking of the pigmented area of skin surroundingthe nipple (areola) or breast skin

6. Redness or pitting of the skin over your breast, like the skin of an orange

While you can’t prevent breast cancer altogether, there are certain things you can doto reduce your risk of discovering it at an advanced stage. For example:

Get routine mammograms. The American Cancer Society recommends having a baselinemammogram at age 35, and a screening mammogram every year after age 40.

Examine your breasts every month after age 20. You’ll become familiar with thecontours and feel of your breasts and will be more alert to changes.

Have your breasts examined by a healthcare provider at least once every three yearsafter age 20, and every year after age 40. Clinical breast exams can detect lumpsthat mammograms may not find.

Your healthcare provider will perform a breast examination and ask about your familyhistory, medical history and any existing symptoms. Your healthcare provider willalso recommend tests to check for breast abnormalities. These tests may include:

Mammogram : These special X-ray images can detect changes or abnormal growthsin your breast. A mammogram is commonly used in breast cancer prevention.

Ultrasonography : This test uses sound waves to take pictures of the tissuesinside of your breast. It’s used to help diagnose breast lumps or abnormalities.

Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning : A PET scan uses special dyes tohighlight suspicious areas. During this test, your healthcare provider injects aspecial dye into your veins and takes images with the scanner.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) : This test uses magnets and radio waves toproduce clear, detailed images of the structures inside of your breast.

Surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, andtargeted medication therapy are just a few of the breast cancer treatmentsavailable. The position and size of the tumor, the outcomes of your lab tests, andif the cancer has spread to other regions of your body are just a few of thevariables that will determine what's best for you. Your treatment plan will becustomized by your healthcare professional to meet your individual needs. Receivinga mix of different treatments is also not unusual.

Breast cancer surgery

Breast cancer surgery involves removing the cancerous portion of your breast and anarea of normal tissue surrounding the tumor. There are different types of surgerydepending on your situation, including:

Lumpectomy : This procedure removes the tumor and some surrounding tissue,leaving the rest of the breast intact.

Axillary lymph node dissection : If lymph nodes removed during a sentinel nodebiopsy contain cancer cells, your doctor may remove additional lymph nodes.

Mastectomy : In this procedure, a surgeon removes an entire breast. In adouble mastectomy, they remove both breasts.

Sentinel node biopsy : This surgery removes a few of the lymph nodes thatreceive drainage from the tumor. These lymph nodes will be tested. If they don’thave cancer, you may not need additional surgery to remove more lymph nodes.

Contralateral prophylactic mastectomy : Even though breast cancer may bepresent in only one breast, some people elect to have a contralateral prophylacticmastectomy. This surgery removes your healthy breast to lower your risk ofdeveloping breast cancer again.

Radiation therapy

High-powered radiation beams are used in radiation therapy to find and kill cancercells. The majority of radiation therapies employ external beam radiation. Thisprocedure makes use of a sizable machine that is external to the body.Doctors maynow irradiate cancer from inside the body thanks to advancements in cancertreatment. Brachytherapy is the name given to this radiation therapy, according toBreastcancer.org.In order to administer brachytherapy, doctors implant radioactiveseeds, also known as pellets, close to the tumor. The seeds remain there for alittle time and begin to eliminate cancer cells.

Chemotherapy

A medication therapy called chemotherapy is used to kill cancer cells. Some peoplemay endure chemotherapy on its own, but this sort of treatment is commonly usedcombined with other treatments, including surgery.Some patients will undergo surgeryfirst, then other therapies like radiation or chemotherapy. The term for this isadjuvant therapy. Others may receive neoadjuvant therapy, or chemotherapy, to shrinkthe cancer before surgery.Doctors may opt to administer chemotherapy prior tosurgery. The treatment is intended to reduce the tumor in size so that less invasivesurgery will later be required.Before beginning chemotherapy, talk to your doctorabout any concerns you may have as there are numerous undesirable side effects.

Hormone therapy

Your doctor might start you on hormone therapy if the breast cancer you have ishormone-sensitive. Two female hormones, estrogen and progesterone, can promote thedevelopment of breast cancer tumors.In order for hormone therapy to be effective,either your body's production of these hormones or the hormone receptors on cancercells must be blocked. The progress of your cancer may be slowed down or perhapsstopped by taking this action.

Immunotherapy for breast cancer

Immunotherapy uses the power of your own immune system to target and attack breastcancer cells. Treatment is given intravenously (through a vein in your arm or hand).Your healthcare provider might use immunotherapy for breast cancer in combinationwith chemotherapy.

Targeted drug therapy for breast cancer

Certain medications can specifically target cancer-causing cell traits. If yourbreast cancer has spread to other parts of your body, your doctor may advise you totake a targeted medication therapy. Monoclonal antibodies (such as trastuzumab,pertuzumab, and margetuximab), antibody-drug conjugates (such as ado-trastuzumabemtansine and fam-trastuzumab deruxtecan), and kinase inhibitors are some of themost popular medications used to treat breast cancer (such as lapatinib, neratiniband tucatinib).